Packaging process and packaged product

ABSTRACT

A process of applying a polymeric film sleeve to a product by a stretch sleeving process is provided. In one aspect the product has a tapered cuboidal shape having four converging sides with which the polymeric film sleeve maintains contact. In another aspect two polymeric film sleeves are applied perpendicular to one another.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) toGreat Britain Application Serial No. 0126038.9 filed Oct. 30, 2001(Attorney Docket No. CM2622FM).

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] This invention relates to processes for applying decorativepackaging to products such as containers and to products which have beenpackaged by this process.

[0004] 2. Background of the Invention

[0005] It is well known to supply household products in variouscontainers, which must be provided with an indication of, for instance,the name and type of product. These containers may have a wide varietyof shapes and be formed from a wide variety of materials. One type ofcontainer has a shape which is essentially tapered cuboidal. That is, ithas two faces which are substantially parallel and four convergingfaces. Such a container is illustrated in FIG. 1. It can be seen thatthe two substantially parallel sides form a lid and base respectively,with the four converging faces forming the sides of the container. Suchcontainers have recently been found to be particularly useful forholding products such as floor wipes, which are provided as a stackinside the container.

[0006] These containers are commonly formed from polymeric material andit would be desirable to be able to provide decorative and/orinformative labelling on the container. One option is to apply labelswith adhesives or by in-mold labelling, the decoration/information beingprovided on the label, but the materials for the labels and adhesivesare expensive. In a high-volume product of this type, such expense canbe prohibitive.

[0007] Other options would be to insert the container in a box but againthis adds to the amount of packaging and the expense.

[0008] It is known to package containers using shrink polymeric films.However, this has the disadvantage that materials from which polymericshrink films are formed, such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethyleneterephthalate (PET), biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) areexpensive and the processes for rendering them heat-shrinkable areexpensive. They also carry the risk of deformation of the polymericmaterial of the container due to the high shrink forces applied. Theycan also be difficult for the consumer to remove.

[0009] Therefore it would be desirable to provide a means for applyingdecorative or informative packaging to containers of this general shapein a convenient and economical manner.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] According to the invention we provide a process of applying apolymeric film sleeve to a product, wherein the product is taperedcuboidal in shape and has four converging side faces and the polymericfilm sleeve is applied by stretch sleeving and is applied to the productsuch that it contacts the four converging side faces.

[0011] In a further aspect, we provide a process of applying at leasttwo polymeric film sleeves to a product in which a first film sleeve isapplied to the product such that the first film sleeve has a first axisand a second sleeve is applied to the product such that its axis isperpendicular to the first axis.

[0012] The invention also provides the novel products of theseprocesses.

[0013] We find that the use of stretch sleeving for provision ofdecorative or informative packaging on products, especially containers,of this shape, has the benefits of increased economy without sacrificingquality of the packaging. In particular, low density polyethylene (LDPE)or low density polyethylene/ethyl vinyl acetate (EVA) blends orco-extrusions may be used for the polymeric film sleeve. These are veryinexpensive film materials.

[0014] The process of stretch sleeving is well known. However, as far aswe are aware it has previously been applied primarily to products whichare bottles or otherwise have an essentially cyclindrical shape. Thusthe polymeric film sleeve is applied to a container which has a circularor oval cross-section. We are not aware that this process has previouslybeen applied to containers of the shape defined above and in particularapplied in such a way that two perpendicularly arranged sleeves areapplied to a container.

[0015] Furthermore, we find that application of stretch sleeving tocontainers of the type discussed above is not straightforward andpreferred features of the invention address problems which may arise.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0016]FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a tapered cuboidal container towhich a polymeric film sleeve can be applied in the invention.

[0017]FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the same container having had asingle polymeric film sleeve applied in contact with the four convergingfaces.

[0018]FIG. 3 shows the container of FIG. 1 having had two polymeric filmsleeves applied in a perpendicular orientation.

[0019]FIG. 4 shows the stages in a process of the invention forapplication of a single polymeric film sleeve.

[0020]FIG. 5 shows a preferred configuration of the container lid.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0021] The invention will be discussed below in the context of acontainer, since it is preferred in the invention that the product towhich the polymeric film is applied is a container for a householdproduct. However, it will be understood that the invention is equallyapplicable to products of the same general shape which are notcontainers.

[0022] The container of the first aspect of the invention is of atapered cuboidal shape. Thus it has two essentially parallel faces andfour converging faces.

[0023] In the discussion below we refer to the vertical axis of thecontainer as the axis which is perpendicular to the two substantiallyparallel faces. The height H of the container 1 shown in FIG. 1 is theheight along this axis.

[0024] It will be seen that such a container has two horizontal axes Wand B perpendicular to the vertical axis along which the width W andbreadth B, respectively, may be measured.

[0025] For convenience, we will define the end edges 2 as thoseessentially perpendicular to the W axis and the side edges 3 as thosesubstantially perpendicular to the B axis. If the width and breadth arenot the same then the width is the longer dimension, and thus the sideedges are shorter than the end edges, if they are not identical inlength. The same applies to the end (4) and side (5) faces respectively.Thus in FIG. 1 the end edges are designated as 2 and the end faces as 4,the side edges are designated as 3 and the side faces as 5.

[0026] Generally the height of the container is less than both the widthand the breadth.

[0027] The invention is particularly useful when the container has aheight:width ratio of less than 1:3, preferably less than 1:4. Theinvention is particularly valuable for application to containers whoseheight is less than 120 mm, preferably less than 100 mm.

[0028] The degree of taper of a converging face of the container isdefined as the angle between that converging side and the vertical axis.Preferably this angle is the same for all four converging faces and isnot more than 10°, preferably not more than 5°, more preferably not morethan 3°. Generally it is at least 1°.

[0029] Preferably the converging faces are substantially planar and notconcave or convex.

[0030] The second aspect of the invention may be applied to containershaving a different shape, for instance a non-tapered shape, butpreferably is applied to containers having the same shape as those inthe first aspect of the invention.

[0031] When two perpendicular polymeric film sleeves are applied to acontainer of tapered cuboidal shape, it is preferred that the edgescontacted by the polymeric film sleeve are substantially parallel, andin particular there is an angle of not more than 5°, preferably not morethan 1° and in particular not more than 0.5° between them.

[0032] In the invention one polymeric sleeve is applied to the containerso that it contacts the four converging faces. The second sleeve, ifused, then contacts two of the converging faces and the upper and lowerfaces. The second sleeve may contact either the two longer convergingside faces or the two shorter converging side faces.

[0033] In the invention the substantially parallel faces are describedas the upper and lower faces, since they are usually in thisconfiguration when the product is sold.

[0034] It can be seen that each polymeric film sleeve has an axis. FIG.2 shows the first axis A1 of the first polymeric film sleeve 6. In thiscase the first sleeve is applied to the converging faces and thus firstaxis A1 is the same as the vertical axis of the container. FIG. 3A showsthe second axis A2 of the second polymeric film sleeve 7. It can be seenthat this is the same as the B axis of the container. In an alternativeembodiment, shown in FIG. 3B, the second sleeve has an axis A3 which isthe same as the W axis of the container.

[0035] When a sleeve is applied which contacts the upper and lower facesand two of the converging side faces, it is important that edges withwhich the sleeve comes into contact have minimal protrusions, to avoidbreakage of the film.

[0036] This can cause difficulty with prevention of the lid which formsthe upper face from undergoing “denesting,” which is a tendency for thelids not to separate during the process of filling and closing thecontainer. This is addressed by providing a preferred configuration forthe lid, showed in FIG. 5. As can be seen from FIG. 5 the lid 8 isprovided with rounded corners 9 and has essentially no protrusions alongthe portion of the end edges 2 with which a sleeve is to come intocontact. However, the lid is also provided with a flange 10 at eachrounded corner 9, the flange being provided with a projection 11. Theheight of the projection relative to the height of the lid is chosen sothat the underside of the corresponding flange of a lid stacked abovethe first lid rests on the top surface of the projection 11 and theunderside of the upper lid is kept from contacting the upper side of thelower lid.

[0037] The container is generally in the form of a lower part, commonlydescribed as a tray, and an upper lid (8 in FIG. 1). Thus the tray formsthe lower face and the four converging side faces, and the lid forms theupper face.

[0038] The container may be made by any suitable process, for instanceinjection molding or thermoforming. It may be made from any suitablepolymeric material such as high impact polystyrene, polypropylene, PET,PVC, standard polystyrene or HDPE, but high impact polystyrene and PETare preferred.

[0039] One difficulty which can arise with applying a polymeric filmsleeve by stretch sleeving to a tapered cuboidal container is that theappearance of the sleeve applied to the four converging side faces maybe uneven. In particular, loosening and wrinkling may be observedtowards the lower face towards which the side faces converge.

[0040] In order to address this problem, preferably the percent stretchis chosen to be at least 1% at all points where the polymeric filmsleeve makes contact with the converging faces. More preferably it is atleast 1.2% at all points. In general the percentage stretch will bearound 1 or 1.5% at the narrowest circumference of the container withwhich the polymeric film sleeve is in contact and is at least 4%, oftenup to 4.5 or 5% or 8%, at the widest part of the container with whichthe film has contact.

[0041] Percentage stretch is defined as:

[(circumference of container−circumference of sleeve beforestretching)/circumference of container]×100%

[0042] (the circumference of the container being measured around thepart at which the stretch is to be measured and around which the sleeveis applied).

[0043] A further problem which may arise, in particular in the casewhere the height is relatively low, eg below 100 mm, is that thepolymeric film sleeve may slide off the container during transport oruse.

[0044] This difficulty can be addressed for instance by the choice offilm sleeve/container combination. In particular it is preferred tochoose a combination such that the coefficient of friction CF betweenthe film and the container is at least 0.3, preferably 0.4 to 1(measured by ASTM D1894).

[0045] Generally the nature of the polymeric film is chosen so as toachieve the desired value of CF, but modifications to the container(such as the components or the surface roughness) may also be used.

[0046] An alternative way of dealing with this potential problem is toapply a small amount of adhesive to the polymeric film sleeve/containercombination. This may be applied on to the sleeve before it is appliedto the container but is preferably applied on to the container.Generally only small amounts of adhesive are required and are preferablyapplied to the end faces.

[0047] Preferred adhesives are water-based and a suitable adhesive isE2019 water based adhesive supplied by Sealock, Colles Industrielles,France.

[0048] The film sleeve(s) may be made of any suitable material which canbe applied by a stretch sleeving process. Examples are low densitypolyethylene LDPE and blends of LDPE with ethylene vinyl acetate EVA orco-extrusions of LDPE with EVA.

[0049] The polymeric film sleeve may be applied to the container inconventional manner. An example process is illustrated schematically inFIGS. 4A to 4D. A polymeric film sleeve 6 is formed (FIG. 4A) and thensubjected to stretching so that its circumference is greater than thecircumference of the container 1 to which it is to be applied (4B). Thefilm is then positioned around the relevant faces 4 and 5 of thecontainer (FIG. 4C). The film is then released (FIG. 4D). Because thecircumference of the film in the unstretched state is lower than thecircumference of the container, the film sleeve fits tightly on to thecontainer.

[0050] The thickness of the polymeric film sleeve is generallyconventional. In the final product the thickness is generally from 10 to120 μm, preferably 20 to 100 μm, more preferably 40 to 90 μm.

[0051] In the unstretched state polymeric sleeves suitable forapplication to tray-lid containers for carrying household goods havecircumference of for instance 400 to 1000 mm and width from 10 to 60 mm.

[0052] The filling of the container and the application of the polymericfilm sleeve or sleeves may be carried out in any convenient manner, butpreferably a polymeric film sleeve is applied to the four convergingsides, the container is then filled with the relevant product, the lidis then applied to form the upper face of the container and a secondperpendicular polymeric film sleeve is then applied in contact with theupper and lower faces and two of the converging side faces to which thefirst sleeve has already been applied.

[0053] The polymeric sleeve applied in contact with the four convergingsides is generally described herein as the first sleeve, since it ispreferably applied first. The sleeve in contact with the upper and lowersurfaces is generally described as the second sleeve.

[0054] The second sleeve is preferably applied such that the degree ofstretch is at least 1%, preferably at least 1.5%.

[0055] Preferably the coefficient of friction (determined according toASTM D1894) between the second sleeve and the container is at least 0.1,preferably 0.1 to 1, in particular around 0.2.

[0056] It may be convenient to provide either or both sleeves, butespecially the second sleeve, with perforations or other means to renderit easier for the consumer to remove the sleeve.

[0057] Where the product is a container, it may contain any desiredproduct, but especially a household cleaning product. For the first timewe have been able to provide containers containing detergent materialsby use of stretch sleeving. It can be problematic attempting to applylabels to detergent-containing containers, because the detergent cantend to attack the adhesive holding the label to the container. Sincethe stretch sleeving process of the present invention does not dependupon the use of large amounts of adhesive, this is particularlyconvenient for the labelling of detergent containers and indeed in afurther aspect of the invention we provide a process of applying apolymeric film sleeve to a container containing detergent by stretchsleeving. We also provide the product of this process.

[0058] The product is preferably a container which contains a stack ofdisposable mops wetted with a cleaning composition. These may each befolded in thirds in the container. Preferred containers and mops aredisclosed in EP-A-1086648.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of packaging a product comprising thesteps of: applying a polymeric film sleeve to a product wherein saidcontainer has a tapered cuboidal shape having four converging side facesand wherein said polymeric film sleeve is applied in contact with allfour converging side faces by a stretch sleeving process.
 2. The methodof claim 1 wherein said polymeric film sleeve is made of materialselected from the group consisting of low density polyethylene, blend oflow density polyethylene and ethyl vinyl acetate, co-extrusion of lowdensity polyethylene and ethyl vinyl acetate and any combinationthereof.
 3. The method of claim 1 wherein said product is a containercomprising a detergent product.
 4. The method of claim 1 wherein saidconverging side faces have a tapering angle of between about 1 and 10degrees.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein the coefficient of frictionbetween said product and said film sleeve is between about 0.3 toabout
 1. 6. The method of claim 1 wherein said film sleeve has apercentage stretch of at least about 1% at all points of contact withsaid converging side faces.
 7. A method of packaging a productcomprising the steps of: applying a first polymeric film sleeve to saidproduct by a stretch sleeving process such that said first polymericfilm sleeve has a first axis; and applying a second polymeric filmsleeve by a stretch sleeving process to said product such that saidsecond polymeric film sleeve has a second axis which is substantiallyperpendicular to said first axis of said first polymeric film sleeve. 8.A packaged product comprising: A product having a tapered cuboidal shapehaving four converging faces; and a first polymeric film sleeve appliedto said product by a stretch sleeving process wherein said polymericfilm sleeve is in contact with said four converging side faces.
 9. Thepackaged product of claim 8 wherein said first polymeric film sleeve ismade of material selected from the group consisting of low densitypolyethylene, blend of low density polyethylene and ethyl vinyl acetate,co-extrusion of low density polyethylene and ethyl vinyl acetate and anycombination thereof.
 10. The packaged product of claim 8 wherein saidproduct is a container comprising a detergent product.
 11. The packagedproduct of claim 8 wherein said converging side faces have a taperingangle of between about 1 and 10 degrees.
 12. The packaged product ofclaim 8 wherein the coefficient of friction between said product andsaid film sleeve is between about 0.3 to about
 1. 13. The packagedproduct of claim 8 wherein said product comprises a second polymericfilm sleeve applied to said product by a stretch sleeving process andwherein said first polymeric film sleeve has a first axis and saidsecond polymeric film sleeve has a second axis such that said first axisis substantially perpendicular to said second axis.
 14. The packagedproduct of claim 13 wherein said second polymeric film sleeve is made ofmaterial selected from the group consisting of low density polyethylene,blend of low density polyethylene and ethyl vinyl acetate, co-extrusionof low density polyethylene and ethyl vinyl acetate and any combinationthereof.
 15. The packaged product of claim 13 wherein said product is acontainer comprising a detergent product.
 16. The packaged product ofclaim 15 wherein said converging side faces have a tapering angle ofbetween about 1 and 10 degrees
 17. The packaged product of claim 15wherein the coefficient of friction between said product and said filmsleeve is between about 0.3 to about 1.